Tuesday 6 October 2020

Name That Tune: Our Top Ten Charles Songs


Charles, Charlie, Chuck... there was only one man to illustrate this week's name: Charles Edward Anderson Berry.

I don't have time to list all the other famous musical Charlies in my collection, but I'm sure you know who most of them are... and you spotted quite a few yourselves.

Walter offered...

The Charlie Daniels Band - The Devil Went Down To Georgia 

Charlie Cunningham - You Sigh

The Swede said:

 As for performers, I'll go for the great Charlie Rich. His solo piano version of 'Feel Like Going Home' is one of my Desert Island Discs.

Charlie Rich - Feel Like Going Home

Rigid Digit went for...

Charlie Harper - leader of UK Subs, 112 years old, and just completed the alphabet with the UK Subs 26th album Ziezo.

UK Subs - Tomorrow's Girls

Alyson suggested:

There's Chas of Chas and Dave fame, although possibly breaks a rule. 

Chas & Dave - Ain't No Pleasin' You

Another duo is Charles and Eddie who it seems were at the No. 1 spot when I was on my honeymoon in 1992 with Would I Lie To You. Bit of trivia: They performed the song at Bill Clinton's inaugural ball in 1993, which was ironic considering the pickle Bill found himself in down the line re Ms Lewinsky.

Charles & Eddie - Would I Lie To You?

While Swiss Adam came up with...

Maurice and Charles and a track called I, Carpenter which pays homage to Escape From New York.

Maurice & Charles - I, Carpenter

And George offered...

Prince Charles and The City Beat Band - I'm A Fool For Love

All of which remain off the point, since the idea of this feature is songs about Charlies rather than songs BY Charlies. 

Still, on the subject of Prince Charles, George did toss this one into the ring...

McCarthy - Charles Windsor

Although I was more familiar with this version...

Manic Street Preachers - Charles Windsor

Closest with a chance of getting Prince Charles into this Top Ten though was Rigid Digit...

The Smiths - Queen Is Dead

I said Charles, don't you ever crave
To appear on the front of the Daily Mail
Dressed in your Mother's bridal veil?

Which brings us nicely to a new feature-within-a-feature I'm calling Songs That Would Have Made The Top Ten If Rol Was Cool...

The Skids - Charles (Rigid Digit)

The Clash - Charlie Don't Surf (Walter)

Red Hot Chilli Peppers - Charlie (Walter) 

FSK - The Wall (Charity Chic)

Two more miles to Checkpoint Charlie...

Which prompted Jim to recall another strong contender (for any Top Ten)...

Elvis Costello - Oliver's Army

There was a Checkpoint Charlie
He didn't crack a smile...  

And made me remember this...

Little Steven - Checkpoint Charlie 

And finally in the sub-category...

Scrawl - Charles (C)

C also offered "another sweet '60s song". Not one I was immediately familiar with, but it won me over being about rag 'n' bone men. Simpler times.

The Hollies - Charlie And Fred

While Jim also gave us...

The Retro Spankees - Charlie's in the Garden 

Hefner - Charlie Girl 

The Swede was pleased with a Barbara track from last week...

Impressed by the relatively obscure T.Rex song featured in this post, I'll suggest 'Charlie', an early Marc Bolan acoustic demo. 

Marc Bolan - Charlie

It would also be remiss of me not to mention... 

Bob Dylan - High Water (For Charley Patton)

All hail the return of Douglas McLaren from the snowy wastes of Canada! Welcome back, Douglas...

From my personal favourites of all time, the Trash Can Sinatras (or if you prefer to be up with the times, Trashcan Sinatras), there is an obscure b-side in the back catalogue entitled "Charlie's Atlas", with deliciously satirical lyrics full of their usual brand of wordplay and cutting linguistic cunning.

Trash Can Sinatras - Charlie's Atlas

I didn't have much time to do a thorough lyrical search for Charlies this week, but I did find this...

Half Man Half Biscuit - The Best Things In Life

My Uncle Charlie is a cynical man
And his wife’s a touch sceptical too
They’ve got one of those stickers in the back of their van
It says “We’ve seen the prices at the zoo”

Well today I knocked upon their door and said that I was passing
And Charlie launched a scathing attack
When I asked him what I’d done, he said
“You stupid bastard, we live in a cul-de-sac”

While Walter provided...

Lightnin' Hopkins - I'll Be Gone

Do you know your rolling mill is burnin' down?
Mister Charlie
Do you know your rolling mill is burnin' down?
Mister Charlie said if you ain't got no water boy
Just let that old mill burn on down

Sparks - B.C.

My name's Aaron
Hers is Betty
Our boy is a Charlie, so the neighbors sing "hooray for ABC"
ABC forever, each endeavour that I do, I do to keep together
A+B+C

(More from those guys in a moment.)

Jeff Beck - Come Dancing

When Charlie speaks of Lester
You know someone great has gone
The sweetest swinging music man
Had a Porkie Pig hat on
A bright star
In a dark age

And a song from my very younger days by German folk musician Hannes Wader - even it is named Charley...

Hannes Wader - Charley

And finally, the scrapings from my hard-drive...

Skunk Anansie - Charlie Big Potato

The Boo Radleys - Charles Bukowski Is Dead

Drive-By Truckers - Drag The Lake, Charlie

The Temptations - Run, Charlie, Run

Beans On Toast - Charlie

CR Avery - The Ballad of Charlie Parker & Patsy Cline

Lou Reed - Charley's Girl

Lucinda Williams - Lake Charles

The Nude Party - Charlie's Sheep

The Menzingers - Charlie's Army

Danny Wilson - Charlie Boy

Del Amitri - Charlie's Bar


Which brings us to this week's Top Ten... 


10. The Prodigy - Charly

Acid House was never my bag, so if you're going to make an acid house record that I'll listen to more than once, a good idea would be to sample one of my favourite public information films from the 70s.

Well done to Rigid Digit for guessing this one would be in the Top Ten. 

9. Split Enz - Charlie

Jim in Dubai suggested this one...

C added: Argh, I can't believe I forgot Charlie by Split Enz; we've been on a bit of a Split Enz fest in this house lately! (I have developed something of a crush on Noel Crombie - who doesn't like a man who can play the spoons?!)

Jim returned: You can't go wrong with Split Enz, always preferred them to Crowded House, some of those 70's video were brilliant, enjoy your Enz Fest :-)

8. Danny O'Keefe - Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues

Well done to Lynchie for suggesting this. 

It's been covered by Dwight Yoakam, Willie Nelson and (my favourite version) Waylon Jennings.

About another 20 cover versions of that song.

Whereas the first version I heard was...

Elvis Presley - Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues

7. Steely Dan - Charlie Freak

A sorry tale of guilt, advantage-taking and regret.

6. Sparks - When I Kiss You I hear Charlie Parker Playing

Jim in Dubai is doing well this week.

5. A Camp - Charlie Charlie

Charlie Charlie 
He's got my credit card 
And hasn't been seen 
He stole my heart 
But if you happen to meet him
Tell him I don't want the money 
I just want him

That's Nina Persson from The Cardigans.

Here she is again...

The Cardigans - Travelling With Charlie

Poor Charley
He would be nothing without me
But I do love him

4. Warren Zevon - Charlie's Medicine

A tribute to an old drug dealer... Warren at his best.

Charlie dealt in pharmaceuticals
Charlie used to sell me pills
Yesterday his sister called to tell me
He'd been killed
Some respectable doctor from Beverly Hills
Shot him through the heart
Charlie didn't feel a thing
Neither of them did
Poor kid

I came to say goodbye
I'm sorry Charlie died
I came to finish paying my bill

3. REM - Man On The Moon

Excellent lyrical spot from Rigid Digit...

Mister Charles Darwin had the gall to ask

Douglas adds...

The Low Anthem - Charlie Darwin

The (more or less) title track of their 2008 album. A fine slice American indie folk which may go over well with some ears around here if any are not familiar with it.

And here's an unexpected cover of that track...

Tom Jones - Charlie Darwin

And any excuse to play one of my favourite Weezer songs...

Weezer - Wind In Our Sails

We got the wind in our sails
Like Darwin on the Beagle

2. Rickie Lee Jones - Chuck E's In Love 

Does that count as a Charlie song? asks Lynchie.

It does indeed.

1. The Coasters - Charlie Brown

Walter was first in line to suggest this one.

Alyson added...

It was written by Lieber and Stoller and I've just discovered the first song they wrote, called Hard Times, was recorded by an artist called Charles Brown - not sure if that's just a coincidence or not.

Charles Brown - Hard Times

Now I have to admit that I was never a fan of the Charlie Brown cartoons. He always seemed a miserable little sod. (Too close to home, perhaps?) But I do love this track.

See also:

Carter USM - Good Grief, Charlie Brown

Ocean Colour Scene - Charlie Brown Says 

And I'm not ashamed to admit that the Coasters song always reminds me of this...

The Bloodhound Gang - Why's Everybody Always Picking On Me?



NEXT WEEK: OUR TOP TEN CAROLINE SONGS


Quite a few to choose from... but will your Number One be the same as mine?



22 comments:

  1. Let's get the early obvious ones out of the way.

    Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline
    Status Quo - Caroline

    A bit less obvious...?

    Kate Nash - Caroline's A Victim
    Fleetwood Mac - Caroline
    Lou Reed - Caroline Says I and II
    Jimmy Buffett - Woman Goin' Crazy on Caroline Street
    Cheap Trick - Oh Caroline

    And my pick for #1 in the ten?

    Kirsty MacColl - Caroline

    ReplyDelete
  2. The name she gave was Caroline
    Daughter of a miner
    Townes Van Dandt - Tecumsa Valley

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  3. A sweet '70s song this time - O Caroline by Matching Mole, Robert Wyatt on vocals.

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    Replies
    1. An utterly enchanting song.

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    2. You've beaten me to it C, as that was the song I would have suggested. I think I discovered it from one of the other blogs a couple of years ago and was blown away it - There is a great YouTube clip with loads of '60s/'70s scenes in black and white which brings always brings on an overwhelming sense of nostalgia when I watch it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUFolB3LUpA - Just matches the sound of the song so well.

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    3. Spot on C, an absolute beauty. Another Robert Wyatt tune at least partially inspired by Caroline Coon (as well as Carla Bley and Marsha Hunt) is 'To Carla, Marsha and Caroline (For Making Everything Beautifuller)' from his 1970 LP 'The End of an Ear'. Not sure if Rol will allow that though.

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  4. I am enthused to be able to introduce you to another strong Canadian contender here!
    If your willing to stretch out a little into the Country realm (as I believe by your other selections you are on occasion) my collection yields up the somewhat shocking voice of Colter Wall, from Saskatchewan (that's prairie town, Canada style if you are not up on your Canadian geography, the heart of Canadian Country music). A little test? See if you too, like the Proclaimers, "can say "Saskatchewan" without starting to stutter..." Anyway, give a listen to his song "Caroline" from 2015, and see if you can believe that the lad had barely turned 20 at the time of recording that song.

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  5. "Caroline, No" by The Beach Boys has to be a contender!

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  6. Old Crow Medicine Show - "Caroline"

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  7. The late, great Daniel Johnston - "I Did Acid with Caroline".

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  8. Colin Blunstone (Formerly of the Zombies and then went solo) "Caroline Goodbye"

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  9. Plenty of Carolina songs but struggling to think of any more Caroline ones. Carolina often the state but someone's it's a girl as per Shaggy's Oh Carolina.

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  10. As an Artist I wolle Name Caroline Mas Witz Thomas Dunson's Revenche.
    Songs:
    Talk Talk - Dies Caroline Know?
    Robin Hitchcock - I am not je: I say Caroline, No need to spell it backwards
    Jefferson Starship - Caroline

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  11. ... I hatte typing in a Tablet. Sorry

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  12. James Taylor - Carolina On My Mind

    Psychedelic Furs - Pretty In Pink
    "Caroline laughs, and it's raining all day
    Loves to be one of the girls
    She lives in the place in the side of our lives
    Where nothing is ever put straight"

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  13. Encore: Unsertones - Girls don't talk:
    Caroline's dancing
    Catina's at home
    You get up every morning
    Taking lessons on the phone

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  14. Has anyone suggested Caroline Says (Lou Reed)?

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